City of Denton, Texas
Economic Development Action Plan
The Challenge
Due to its proximity to the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex and a variety of unique characteristics, the City of Denton has a wide array of economic development options. The city had undertaken a number of “visioning-oriented” projects in the recent past and had little interest in reformulating the vision. Unlike traditional economic development plans, which include strategies directed at broad categories, such as workforce and education, our work in Denton centered on helping city leaders evaluate and prioritize the many opportunities available to them.
The Approach
Four initiatives—conducting an image and marketing campaign; implementing a downtown development strategy; developing a technology focused business park; and leveraging the University of North Texas Research Park—were selected using the following considerations:
- What is the potential for short-term success?
- Can the city have an impact?
- Is the initiative already underway without city involvement?
Task forces, comprised of representatives from the business community, as well as public officials and economic development related groups, were organized around each of the four initiatives. The work of the task forces was informed by an economic assessment of the area. The purpose of assessment was to gain an understanding of Denton’s strengths and to benchmark the city against other university cities.
The Outcome
An implementation plan with recommendations regarding the cost, responsible party, and timing was developed for each initiative. Since completion of the project in April 2003, the city has moved forward in support of the development of one of the recommended business park sites. They are in negotiations with the property owner/developer for infrastructure improvements. The property owner/developer has agreed to do the master planning for the site and adhere to the city’s vision. UNT hired a new VP for technology transfer to be responsible for the research park. The downtown task force continues to meet on a monthly basis to implement the plan, and the Denton Chamber of Commerce is spearheading implementation of the image and marketing campaign.
Linda Ratliff Director, Economic Development City of Denton, Texas 215 East McKinney Street Denton, TX 76201 940.349.8303 linda.ratliff@cityofdenton.com
